Denver Mayor Michael Hancock checks initial election results with campaign manager Jake Martin on May 5, 2015. Hancock hosted an election night party at the EXDO Event Center in RiverNorth. (AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)
Tuesday’s Denver election brought no big surprise in the ho-hum mayor’s race, where Michael Hancock amid low turnout and no sizable opponent.
But other races provided plenty of winners, losers and other notable outcomes in an election season that will install seven new faces on the 13-member City Council. Four of those new members still haven’t been chosen, .
Biggest surprise: The Denver auditor’s race, where CPA Tim O’Brien, a former appointed state auditor 20 years ago, shocked attendees at Hancock’s victory party by establishment-backed Councilman Chris Nevitt. His margin of victory , and O’Brien led decisively as soon as results started coming out.
Rafael Espinoza
Most surprising margin: Architect and neighborhood activist Rafael Espinoza’s in northwest Denver’s District 1 wasn’t necessarily the surprise — she long had been seen as the most endangered incumbent. But it was the 37-percentage-point margin of victory that turned heads. The drubbing delivered to Shepherd underlined that voters who cared enough to cast ballots this election in a part of the city that’s been feeling some of the greatest pressure from it.
Aaron Greco
Luckiest candidate, part 1: With each batch of results released, Aaron Greco spent Election Night in third place in the nine-way District 7 council race in south Denver, behind Jolon Clark and Anne McGihon. But in the early morning hours, Greco pulled ahead of McGihon. He in final unofficial results — winning a spot in the runoff, against Clark.
Luckiest candidate, part 2: Mayor Hancock. Consider: In the final weeks of the election, a series of still-unsolved gang shootings in northeast Denver intensified focus on crime, protesters clashed with police, the auditor’s office issued an audit critical of Denver’s homelessness programs and a city official who was close to the mayor — and was the best man at his wedding, in fact — . All perfect material for merciless attacks by a formidable challenger. That is, if Hancock had faced one.
A campaign mailer sent by Chris Nevitts campaign in the final weeks.
Most conflicted endorser: Outgoing Auditor Dennis Gallagher. Term-limited after 12 years in office, the North Denver political icon glowingly endorsed Nevitt to succeed him. The day after Nevitt’s loss, Gallagher appeared to have his eyes focused firmly on preserving his legacy when as “a bad campaign.”
Fiercest warmup: You might think the sprawling District 7 race was the fiercest warmup before a guaranteed runoff, but the strongest battle lines were drawn in central Denver’s District 10. In a five-way race, Wayne New emerged with 34.7 percent of the vote to second-place Anna Jones’ 33 percent. Those two were were favored to make the runoff. But now New, a development critic, will have to build support outside his base in Cherry Creek while Jones, who was strong elsewhere, is tasked with motivating the losing candidates’ challengers to show up for her this time.
Biggest winners: Besides O’Brien for auditor and Espinoza in District 1, two council candidates running for open seats won outright victories Tuesday night: Paul Kashmann in near-southeast District 6, and Kendra Black in far-southeast District 4.
Susan Shepherd
Biggest losses: Nevitt, unexpectedly, and Shepherd, against hope, will be out of jobs in July and will have to reconsider their next steps politically. The question is especially pressing for Nevitt, who observers long speculated had mayoral aspirations.
Wellington Webb (Post file)
Biggest draw: Former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb still is a player behind the scenes, both working for clients and trying hard to maintain his influence in city politics. He notably backed two council candidates — Kashmann, who in District 6, and Halisi Vinson, who in District 4.
Biggest validation that name ID matters: The at-large council race. It’s common for many voters to forgo the option of making their two choices in the at-large race if they only recognize the name of one. This time, the Denver Elections Division reported 57,632 “undervotes,” from voters who only chose one option or skipped the race entirely. That’s more than the vote totals for either Debbie Ortega or Robin Kniech, the two incumbents running. Both against three lesser-known opponents who polled between 7.5 percent and 12.7 percent, compared with 30 percent for Kniech and 38 percent for Ortega. There is no runoff in the at-large race.
Chris Herndon
Sitting pretty: The remaining four council incumbents on the ballot. President Chris Herndon (District 8) and members Mary Beth Susman (District 5) and Paul Lopez (District 3) ran unopposed, while Albus Brooks (District 9) never sweated challenges from two opponents who couldn’t match or name recognition.
